Tired of Cleaning and Organizing? 10 Easy and Inexpensive Hobbies to Fill This Newfound "Free Time"
Now that we're settled into our "new normal" of Quarantine life, it seems that people are falling into 3 buckets...
GROUP A: The crew with LOTS of extra time in their schedules dues to layoffs, furloughs or stay at home orders.
NEEDS: Other options besides watching the entire Tiger King documentary series in one sitting.
GROUP B: Jobs that are essential or have amped up in hours because of COVID.
NEEDS: Decompression time and/or creating boundaries from the home office.
GROUP C: Jobs that are essential or have amped up in hours because of COVID + newly found job title of homeschool teacher to their kids while all of the above is going on.
NEEDS: To survive quarantine with only mild alcoholism.
Whichever category you find yourself identifying with, I see you, and I’m here for you. I created a list of 10 inexpensive or free hobbies you can do during your quarantine. Whether you need it to keep your mind busy, your kids busy, or yourself busy, there’s never been a better time to start something new… or to start that thing you’ve been putting off since forever.
1.Bake or cook something using ingredients you already have.
Whether we’re preparing for a party, a hurricane, or a stay-at-home order, we occasionally find ourselves buying more food than we truly need. We tend to stash the extra foods in the back of the cupboard and forget about them until the next “spring clean-out,” when they inevitably, have expired. A stay-at-home order offers the perfect opportunity to go through your cabinets, gather things you wouldn’t normally use or things that are expiring in the next 3 months, and create a meal out of them! With websites such as https://fridgetotable.com/, you can input the random ingredients you have and receive a handful of recipes that use your overflow! And for those of you who decided this is a good time to clean out your bar (no judgment here!), you can visit https://makemeacocktail.com/mybar/ for the same recipe configuration- but with mixed drinks!
2. Watch, organize and backup your family videos and photographs.
How happy and nostalgic do you get looking at pictures of you and your childhood bestie in your neon 1990’s outfits? Or pictures of you and your grandparents from one of your dance recitals or athletic events? Most of us have years worth of photos in shoeboxes at home or in folders on our computers. When we finally need those pictures, it’s like sorting marbles to find the one we want. Why not use your free time to organize your photos and stir up some hilarious decade-old memories? I looked into the infinite options for photo storage and organization and it seemed like Google Photos was the most user-friendly. It works on desktop and mobile, stores your photos in the clouds, and offers layers upon layers of organization and even sharing and printing options. It seems to be similar to iPhone photos, but inclusive for non-apple users. Maybe your next goal can be to organize your quarantine photos…. “Cooking photos,” “Working out photos.”
3. Start a new feel-good fitness regimen.
All year ‘round we dream up our health and fitness goals, but our busy schedules or stressful work weeks prevent us from actually committing. Whether you’re working from home or just spending a lot of time at home, it’s the perfect time to commit to those goals. After all, there’s no temptation of sugary Starbucks drinks or break-room snacks. You can wear workout gear “to work,” do your workout before, after or even on your lunch break! Our workout library has over 1000 different workouts. Whether you like barre, dance, lifting, or line dancing, I can guarantee you’ll find a program you love! Chances are, you’re home for the next 21 days, and coincidentally that’s how long it takes to make a behavior a habit. It sounds like perfect timing!
4. Practice a new language.
As someone who is learning Danish, I’ll tell you that in the hustle and bustle of everyday life, it’s not easy. Learning a new language usually requires listening, speaking, and reading, which can’t be done during your commute or when you’re at your desk at work. The newfound freedom we have at home affords us tons of extra time to get in Duolingo lessons between calls, while we’re eating lunch or while we’re out for one of our 3 walks a day. I bet if you practice daily until May, you’ll be ordering champagne and beignets like a Parisian.
5. Share positivity art around your neighborhood using sidewalk chalk.
I’ve seen a lot of heartwarming things lately. Kids drawings on local business shopfronts, messages of hope on billboards. Who doesn’t smile when a stranger leaves them a note? When you’re out for your next walk, bring some sidewalk chalk with you and contribute to the anonymous messages of positivity in your neighborhood.
6. Participate in a puzzle exchange with friends or neighbors
Have a puzzle you’ve already finished that’s just taking up space on a shelf? Most neighborhoods these days have Facebook groups where residents exchange furniture, odd jobs, and even toys. It’s the perfect time to chat with your neighbors and see if anyone wants to do a puzzle swap (with porch drop-off and sanitizing of course). With the number of people who have puzzles stashed away in closets, you could probably stay busy until summer!
7. Take a cooking class from a place you wish you were currently visiting.
Heartbroken is an understatement when we found out our company rewards trip to tropical Punta Cana was canceled this year. I knew our company would find a way to make it up to us, but man, was I looking forward to that Cinco de Mayo margarita class with my coach besties! While poking around on Airbnb I noticed that there’s a way we can still make memories like these even while on quarantine. Tons of hosts all over the world are offering virtual experiences, where you can take a salsa-making class with a chef in Mexico, a pasta class with an Italian nonna, or a wine class with a Portuguese wine expert.
8. Learn a new skill.
If you’re anything like me, there are tons of different skills you wish had time to learn. Whether it’s social media marketing, calligraphy, graphic design, or even piano, there are tons of resources online to learn new skills for free. Business coaches, workshop leaders, and even websites like Skillshare are offering major discounts right now so you can invest in your skills, yourself, or your business during this uncertain time.
9. Write letters to people in nursing homes.
Though we might have less on our schedules these days, we definitely have a lot on our minds. We tend to forget that there is a large population of people we love who may be having a tough time right now. Elderly people, our grandparents, and those who live in nursing homes are in isolation and have elevated worry about catching the virus. Letters to the Elderly is a nonprofit that connects people like us, who find ourselves wanting to reach out, to elderly folks around the country. No need to be a Shakespeare, even a light-hearted note or drawing will brighten their day.
10. Plan a weekly virtual Houseparty with your siblings or friends.
Imagine if Facetime, Heads Up, Pictionary and Trivia Crack got together and had a quarantine baby…. It would be named “House Party” and it’s the app you should definitely get your siblings or friends to download. Houseparty is exactly as it sounds, but virtual. You invite up to 8 people into your “house” to chat and play games like Heads Up, Pictionary and Trivia. You may not be able to have wine and game night in person but you can definitely get some laughs out of a virtual game night!
This new lifestyle may be temporary, or it may be long-term. The truth is, we don’t know. It sounds cliche, but I truly believe all we can do is make the best of the moments we have. I don’t know about you but I don’t want to look back and see someone who caught up on Netflix while the opportunity to connect with loved ones and be productive just passed me by.